Personal data of 6,215 Arizonans Stolen in LexisNexis Security Breach

(Phoenix, Ariz. - April 13, 2005) More than 6,000 Arizona residents are among the 310,000 people nationally whose personal data files were stolen from information broker LexisNexis, Attorney General Terry Goddard said today.

LexisNexis reported in March that 32,000 personal files had been breached. On Tuesday, the company said the number is now believed to be almost 10 times higher. The number of Arizonans whose Social Security numbers, driver's license information and addresses were fraudulently acquired was put at 6,215.

LexisNexis will send letters in the next few days to everyone whose data was acquired, Goddard said. Those letters will include phone numbers people can use to learn more about the security breach and what they can do to protect against identity theft. In addition to the notifications, the company is offering free credit monitoring to all 310,000 people.

The general public can contact a customer service number for LexisNexis at 1-866-246-2328.

"This episode, together with the ChoicePoint, Bank of America and other security lapses in the past two months, underscores the need for a law requiring data brokers to notify consumers whose personal information is lost," Goddard said. “In this instance, LexisNexis voluntarily agreed to notify consumers, but that has not always been the case.”

"My office supported a bill in the State Legislature this year that would have required such notification, but it failed to receive a hearing and died in committee," Goddard said. "A bill is now pending in Congress to impose this basic requirement. Depending on its fate, we may need to come back to the Legislature."